I realize this isn't a traditional statement essay, but my education experience has not been traditional.
Your statement of purpose should consist of approximately 500 words and should provide an overview of your academic and personal experience, describing preparation for and commitment to further study at SCAD, as well as educational and professional goals and aspirations.
Time is my biggest fear.
It goes but never comes. It flies but never slows.
I got sick in the sixth grade. My muscles knotted in ropes and I would watch the clock. Tick, tock. It mocked me. I would watch it for hours, well because that is how long the pain lasted. It was not easy for my mom to see her little girl who was the fastest runner in the neighborhood, her little girl who directed the neighborhood kids in plays performed in the basement become too tired to perform daily tasks. My mom told me seven words that changed my life, "Take it five minutes at a time." It was then time became my most valued possession.
I was absent the spring semesters of 6th, 10th, and 11th grade. The time away from school made the time spent in school treasured. I learned to love learning. Looking at my transcript, you would not know I was ever out of school. I did my best because there was not any time to do my okay-est. I felt I had to prove myself, like I had to show all my teachers, principals, friends and family that I was capable of being a gold-star student, not just some sick girl (and from what, again, made her so sick?). But there were those three times my illness kept me home bound. I did not let that stop me from learning. I read. Oh, the books I read, they sack up like skyscrapers against my walls. I let my imagination loose and free to live out the stories told in these books. Authors and their books became the best teachers, not only morally but literarily, and from them I learned the art and joy of storytelling.
March 14th, 2014, I was finally diagnosed with Common Variable Immune Deficiency (CVID). My mom and I cried. We waited impatiently for this day for seven years. With almost a year of monthly immunoglobulin infusions, the pain and fatigue are controlled.
Turns out CVID is inherited and my mom, too, suffers from it - we have been living off her disability for a couple of years.
I do not remember the moment I got this epiphany, but it should have come sooner. I never had the time to think any further than the present until my health improved. My future was coming fast, to think college is next year, and my god! did you say I was eighteen? So, I flipped open a sketchbook, dated it June 10th, 2014 and started drawing hands; might as well start with the hard stuff, but it was not that hard. Improvement showed on each page. I signed up for my first art class this year and have made my art teacher proud.
The thing about art is that I don't notice the clock.
With a treatment, I have the opportunity of being the animator I dreamed of being as a girl watching and singing along to Disney movies - which I still do today. Art has been my cure and it is my passion to create believable tales that transport people to a different world and time. Animated films have influenced my life and now it's my turn to do the same for others. I know that I will be right at home at SCAD, bringing with me ambition, creativity, and leadership that create a successful artist. I visited SCAD over the summer and fell in love with the culture and opportunity. My talent is developing quickly and I'm excited about the growth SCAD will offer to me. My life experience helped me discover my talent and uniquely shaped my creativity, imagination, and drive to succeed.
Your story is quite touching Davies. It is enough to tug on the heart strings of the admissions officers reviewing your application. However, it is not the correct information that should be contained in your statement of purpose. What you wrote fits more in a common prompt essay. A statement of purpose needs only provide 4 pieces of basic information since you are applying for masters degree studies. Revise the essay to present the following:
1. Your reason or purpose for wishing to attend higher academic learning after college.
2. The number of years that you have worked in a relevant field which will prove the necessity of advanced studies on your part
3. A summary of your college education accompanied by relevant training and seminars that relate to your interest in the field.
4. Your long and short term goals and a discussion about how the university can help you attain this through a masters education.
Like I said, your current essay is more of a personal essay than a statement of purpose so you need to correct the slant of the essay to become relevant to the prompt. My checklist will help you do that.
